You're not trying to compare military doctors to "real" doctors, are you?

Click to expand...

while in the military, i had one hernia operation & had a knee scoped, and i have no complaints. the fact that there appears to be more (i.e., publicly disclosed) civilian malpractice is a function of hmo's & hospital policy, however, so this leaves me at the threshold of blowing smoke out of my cookie jar.

if nothing else, let's be reminded the president's personal doctor has qualifications beyond being active duty w/ a security clearance. if there's an appreciable difference, i'll have to admit profound ignorance.

This misdiagnosis could happen in any medical practice and I'm quite sure it does, it's just not quiver fodder for Katie as much as a decorated Marine dying while the reporter is there and the reporter immediately herding the family to give him an exclusive interview.

That being ranted...

The point, I think is the fact that military members can't sue the government like a civilian could sue a private doctor..

Sad story regardless...only can hope my picture never gets photoscreenprinted on a t-shirt!

I would argue this is why you will see it 100x more often in the military than the private sector. Doctors in the private sector have to care in order to get paid.

I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but I think it is FAR less likely.

Click to expand...

Oh, I'm not denying that. I've had many medical visits, every year for flight physicals etc. I've had good docs and bad, but at least with having to have a flight surgeon look at me vice most enlisted getting the independent duty corpman to diagnose them, I knew I had an almost "real" doctor. I guess my issue is how the media exploits the military sometimes to make a more dramatic story...

Friend 2: Army 2LT overseeing security operations in Iraq for large oil. Salary = $55k, $350 a month for danger, all the MRE's you can carry.

Job description is nearly identical, working/living conditions are vastly different. If only the market set the pay rates for the military the way it does for private sector, friend 2 would be looking forward to his second deployment the way friend 1 is.

After having a talk about pay last weekend, statements like that make me laugh.

Click to expand...

Back in the US workplace risk does not dictate pay. Police or fire fighters do not make the top ten of most dangerous occupations yet they make more than construction workers and people admire them more even though the risks are lower.

Fishermen It was another tough year for fishermen in 2005; 48 died, up from 38 the year before. That made it the nation's most dangerous occupation in 2005, with a fatality rate of 118.4 per 100,000 - nearly 30 times higher than the rate of the average worker.

...

One of the most mundane parts of the work day - driving - proved fatal for more workers than any other: 2,480 died in transportation accidents, more than 43 percent of all fatal workplace occurrences.

Assaults and other violent acts contributed to danger in the workplace: 14 percent of all fatalities were due to these. Fifty policemen and sheriff's patrol officers were murdered on the job, and another 81 died in traffic accidents and other incidents. The tragic toll added up to 18.2 fatalities per 100,000 workers.

The most dangerous industry in terms of total killed was construction, where 1,186 workers died. The rate of 11.0 per 100,000, however, trailed the agricultural segment (32.5 per 100,000), which included fishing and logging; mining (25.6 per 100,000); and transportation and warehousing (17.6 per 100,000), where many drivers died in traffic accidents.

Click to expand...

CNN 05 Article said:

The private construction industry accounted for 1,186 fatal work injuries, the
most of any industry sector and about one out of every five fatal work injuries recorded
in 2005. While the total number of construction fatalities was 4 percent lower in 2005,
the number of fatalities in residential building construction (NAICS 2361), utility system
construction (NAICS 2371), and highway, street, and bridge construction (NAICS 2373)
increased. These increases were offset by a substantial decrease in the number of
fatalities to specialty trade contractors (NAICS 238) from 759 in 2004 to 675 in 2005,
a decline of 11 percent. Roofing contractor fatalities, which fell from 116 in 2004 to
75 in 2005, accounted for almost half of the decrease in the number of specialty
trade contractor fatalities.

Back in the US workplace risk does not dictate pay. Police or fire fighters do not make the top ten of most dangerous occupations yet they make more than construction workers and people admire them more even though the risks are lower.

Click to expand...

But what about equal risk for equal pay? I'm talking apples=apples.

Also, even though as a police officer you aren't likely to get shot in the face, my guess is there have been a lot more cops shot in the face than construction workers.

Also, even though as a police officer you aren't likely to get shot in the face, my guess is there have been a lot more cops shot in the face than construction workers.

Click to expand...

I agree there is clearly problem with government contractors - corruption and huge waste of tax payer dollars have been going on for years - that is the problem. They overpay for equipment along the same lines.

If you are killed or maimed by equipment or gun fire the result is the same. The guy that caught your seafood is almost ten times more likely to die in the line of duty.

Those are the numbers from US Bureau of Labor and Statistics - that is the reality of the US workplace.

What? It is foreign to an american so it immediately becomes weird or not correct? Buddy, "Americans" are a minority on this earth.

But you were just trying to make a funny right?

Click to expand...

While I do find it a little funny, it's an honest observation that I've wondered about. The reason I used 'minorities' instead of saying mexicans or something is because I've noticed the same thing with black families as well. Not saying it isnt correct or that there's some superior form of grieving, but it is different than what I'm used to.
Did you find that offensive?

Back in the US workplace risk does not dictate pay. Police or fire fighters do not make the top ten of most dangerous occupations yet they make more than construction workers and people admire them more even though the risks are lower.

Click to expand...

police & ff are more admired due to the moral element of their job. and construction workers aren't exactly known to have a high draw to the altruistic. case in point: a buddy of mine heads up a local body shop, and nearly all the felons go to construction. he showed me results of this guy's bg investigation & was actually 42 charges (w/ a free tat every 5, too). if you're a felon, it's damn hard to get a cdl, so that rules out things like busdriver or garbage collector.

police & ff are more admired due to the moral element of their job. and construction workers aren't exactly known to have a high draw to the altruistic. case in point: a buddy of mine heads up a local body shop, and nearly all the felons go to construction. he showed me results of this guy's bg investigation & was actually 42 charges (w/ a free tat every 5, too). if you're a felon, it's damn hard to get a cdl, so that rules out things like busdriver or garbage collector.

Click to expand...

Felon's and even worse - N8 but then again Skookum was a roofer I think?

Construction is the most dangerous by industry (but 10th by occupation) but there are still plenty of honest occupations in the top ten and police corruption isn't rare either.

While I do find it a little funny, it's an honest observation that I've wondered about. The reason I used 'minorities' instead of saying mexicans or something is because I've noticed the same thing with black families as well. Not saying it isnt correct or that there's some superior form of grieving, but it is different than what I'm used to.
Did you find that offensive?

Click to expand...

Nah, I'm not offended man. I get a mean tan in the summer so trust me, the kinds of comments I have heard thought my life would surprise you (or maybe not). And from both sides of the color/culture spectrum, it generates a pretty interesting perspective let me tell ya'. It gets confusing at times, kinda like religion.

I just don't get why if something is different/foreign it is automatically funny, silly, weird or not correct? Maybe it is just the way I was brought up? *shrug*

Nah, I'm not offended man. I get a mean tan in the summer so trust me, the kinds of comments I have heard thought my life would surprise you (or maybe not). And from both sides of the color/culture spectrum, it generates a pretty interesting perspective let me tell ya'. It gets confusing at times, kinda like religion.

I just don't get why if something is different/foreign it is automatically funny, silly, weird or not correct? Maybe it is just the way I was brought up? *shrug*

Whoa, this thread was hijacked huh? edit: not really.

Click to expand...

Well there are plenty of domestic cultural oddities that I find amusing as well. Ever seen a group of NASCAR fans? WTF is wrong with those people?